Within any school system, decisions must be made about closing underperforming and/or underenrolled schools, as well as supporting the opening of new schools. Districts that do this well have clear, consistent standards guiding this process, with an oversight office or team tasked with monitoring enrollment, demand, and school performance. This team makes recommendations to top district leaders about which schools should be opened, closed, replicated, or expanded.

School oversight bodies can take different forms depending on the types of schools within a system. The team overseeing a contract might be a district, or a separate charter authorizer. For example, in Washington, D.C., there is an independent, mayoral-appointed charter authorizing board, and separate school oversight within the traditional school district, whereas Denver provides oversight and authorization for charter, district, and innovation schools from a single office.

In many districts, charter schools are more vulnerable to closure due to the terms of their performance contract (or charter) and their increased level of autonomy. A clear process and set of standards for closing is less likely to exist for district-run schools.

The school quality oversight body must coordinate opening and closure decisions across the district, balancing the need to eliminate low-performing schools with community needs. Openings and closures are both highly consequential decisions. New schools can offer families different, high-quality choices that lessen overcrowding in growing districts or neighborhoods. But new schools might affect existing school enrollment in unpredictable ways and take more resources during the start-up phase. Closures can remove students from persistently underperforming, mismanaged, or financially unsustainable schools and may be particularly necessary when district populations are on the decline. When balanced with new higher-performing options and supports for the displaced students, closures have been shown to improve student achievement in some contexts. But closures can also create disruptions for students, families, and neighborhoods, and are difficult to undo if populations shift again.

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